British Golf Museum St Andrews
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The British Golf Museum is situated next to
the Royal and Ancient Golf Club at St Andrews
Old Course, in the centre of St Andrews
town.
The Museum can be visited all year with an
entrance fee. Postcode: KY16 9AB
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The image top is from the first tee at the
Old Course at St Andrews. The clubhouse at the
Old Course is known as the Royal and Ancient
Golf Club.
The image second top is of the cafe / diner
in the museum with good views down the first
hole at St Andrews Old Course.
The museum covers golf from today back to
when it was played at St Andrews in the 1400s,
said to be where golf as we know it today was
first played.
Golf History
960s - Royals from China hit balls into
holes with clubs.
1200s - a golf like game was being played in
the Netherlands with sticks and leather
balls.
1400s – golf is played in Scotland with hand
made wooden clubs and wooden balls.
1502 – the first professionally manufactured
wooden golf clubs are made for King James IV of
Scotland.
1618 - the Featherie golf ball was
introduced made of leather stuffed with goose
feathers.
1750 - the first golf clubs with iron heads
are made that were not popular as they wore out
the expensive Featherie golf ball too fast.
1848 - The Guttie ball was invented by Rev.
Adam Paterson made from dried sap of the
Malaysian sapodilla tree. The sap had a
rubber-like feel that was made round by heating
and shaping in a mold. These balls were less
expensive so allowed more people to play the
game.
The Guttie ball was heavier than the
Featherie so clubs had to be made stronger.
1860 - the first Open Championship is played
at Prestwick Golf Club in Ayrshire
with Willie Park Sr beating Old Tom Morris by
two shots. The first 12 Opens were played at
Prestwick.
1873 - The Open is played at St Andrews for
the first time with Tom Kidd winning.
The Open is now held at Carnoustie, Royal
Portrush, Royal St George's, St Andrews, Royal
Birkdale, Muirfield, Royal Liverpool, Royal
Lytham and St Annes, Royal Troon, and
Turnberry.
Courses that used to host The Open are
Prestwick, Prince's, and Royal Cinuque
Ports.
1898 – the wound golf ball was created made
up of a rubber core with strands of elastic
wound around the core then covered with a
plastic coating.
1900s early – dimples were added to golf
balls to give more control.
1929 – first metal shafted clubs are
manufactured.
1939 - R&A introduced it's 14 club
rule.
1962 - fiberglass shafts were introduced but
were not popular as they often cracked.
1970 - the first graphite shafts were
produced, becoming the shaft of the future.
1970 - Jack Nicklaus wins The Open at St
Andrews.
1972 - the first modern two piece balls were
introduced by Spalding with a solid rubber core
covered in plastic giving greater distance.
Many professionals continued to use
balatawound rubber core balls claiming they had
more accuracy.
1974 - first aluminum woods are
produced.
1978 - Jack Nicklaus wins The Open at St
Andrews.
1980s - first cavity back irons are
produced.
1980s - fist titanium woods are
produced.
1984 - Seve Ballesteros wins the Open at St
Andrews.
1990 - Nick Faldo wins The Open at St
Andrews.
1991 - Callaway's over sized Big Bertha
driver was introduced, first of the much larger
clubs.
1995 - John Daly won The Open at St
Andrews.
2000 - Tiger Woods won The Open Championship
at St Andrews playing with Nike
solidconstruction balls, leading to most
professionals changing from balatawound to
solidconstruction balls.
2005 - Tiger Woods won The Open at St
Andrews.
The latest trend is woods with titanium
heads and graphite shafts which are
expensive.
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